Switching attachment for railway-cars.



No. 804,000. PATENTED NOV. '7, 1905. H. FBNSKE.

SWITCHING ATTACHMENT FOR RAILWAY CARS.

APPLICATION FILED PEB.18.1905.

2 SHEETS--SHEET 1.

PATENTED NOV. 7, 1905.

H. PENSKE. SWITCHING ATTACHMENT FOR RAILWAY CARS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 18. 1905.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

q l 11 4 4 i 22 0 7 2 2 r 6 a 2 2 f wl l 5 6 UNITED STATES PATENT I OFFICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. '7, 1905.

Application filed February 13, 1905. Serial No. 246,267.

T0 or whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HERMAN FENsKE, a citizen of the United States, residing at St. Louis, in the State of Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Switching Attachments for Railway-Cars, of which the following is aspecification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

My invention relates to improvements in switching attachments for railway-cars; and it consists of the novel arrangement, construction, and combination of parts, as will be fully hereinafter described and claimed.

The object of my invention is to equip a railway-car with a device whereby the car may be switched to a desired track without the use of rail-switches and to be manipulated from the platform by the operator.

Figure 1 is a side view of a car with my device attached. Fig. 2 is a bottom plan view of the same. Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view of my attachment applied to the truck, showing the operation. Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional view of the operating-valve made use of in carrying out my invention. Fig. 5 is a top plan view of the same. Fig. 6 is a horizontal sectional view taken on the line 6 6 of Fig. 4.

In the construction of the device, as shown, I provide a bracket 8, firmly secured to the side rails 9 of the truck, one located on each side, and provided with an angular guideway 10, in which is located and adapted to slide a bifurcated bar 11. This bar 11 is provided at its upper end with recesses 12, formed on two sides, in which are pivotally located toggle-arms 13, their opposite ends 14 pivotally connected to a bell-crank lever 15, which is pivotally mounted between ears 16, formed on the side rails 9 of the truck.

The bifurcated end of the bar 11 is provided with a disk 17, its edge tapered to form a feather-edge, and is for the purpose of coming in contact with the outer edge of the rail to guide the trucks to the desired track. The bar 11 is also provided with a lug 18, which extends into a recess 19, formed in the bracket 8, and in this recess below the lug 18 is located a spring 20, which is for the purpose of replacing the bar and disk to a raised position when the operating power is released.

Beneath the car is provided a frame 21, carrying suitable shives 22 and guide-rollers 23, over which cables 24 are passed, their ends connected to the free end of the bell-crank le vers for manipulating the device.

Each platform of the car is provided with an operating-valve 25, consisting of a cylinder with a movable core 26. In this core is formed two air-passages 27 and 28, and in the cylinder-casing is formed an inlet-port 29, a handle 30, located on the top for operating the valve, bringing the ports in contact to supply the operating-cylinders 31 with compressed air.

Supply-tanks are carried beneath the car to properly supply the operating mechanism with air to operate the pistons 32 forward and tighten the cables 24, placing the devices in operation on either side desired. From the supply-tanks lead pipes 33, conveying the air to the port 29, and from thence the air is admitted to either of the cylinders, as desired, upon the right or left movement of the handle 30, thus bringing the passages 27 and 28 in contact with the port29 and pipes 34 and 35. To release the mechanism, the handle 30 is placed in the position as shown in Figs. 4 and 5, which closes the supply and brings the passages 27 and 28 in communication with the pipes 34 and 35 with the escape-nipples 36.

The most importantfeature of my invention is the attachment to the truck whereby a sharpened disk may be forced downwardly against the outer surface of the rail by any manner of operation and to be placed to its normal position when the power is released. With a device of this character the present style of rail-switches is entirely dispensed with and by bringing the disks in contact with the outer surface of the rail will lead the truck upon the required track.

What I claim isl. A device of the class described, comprising a bracket secured to the truck-frame; a

' bar slidably mounted in the bracket; a revolving disk carried by the sliding bar; a lever mechanism operating said sliding bar and revolving disk, and an air mechanism for operating the entire device, substantially as specifled.

2. A device of the class described, comprising a bracket mounted to a truck-frame between the axles; a bifurcated bar supported in said bracket; a disk carried between the bifurcations; toggle-arms; bell-crank levers In testimony whereof lafiix my signature in connected to the toggle-arms; cablesconnectpresence of two Witnesses. ed to the bell-crank levers, and an air system HERMAN FENSKE' for tightening the cables to manipulate the 5 device and bring the disks in contact with the Witnesses:

outer surface of the rail to convey the car to GEO. THIERS, the track desired, substantially as specified. ALFRED A. EIOKS. 

